'The Illusionist' revealed as Andrew Lloyd Webber's next musical

Director Jamie Lloyd will direct the new musical about a disruptive magician, which has music by Lloyd Webber and a book written by Chris Terrio.

Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber has revealed his next musical will be a magical romance called The Illusionist. The show will be directed by Jamie Lloyd, whose version of Lloyd Webber's Sunset Boulevard is currently on Broadway, with Nicole Scherzinger in the lead role.

The Illusionist is being co-created with Chris Terrio, who wrote the Oscar winner Argo and Justice League. British songwriter Bruno Major is also attached to the musical and Michael Harrison will co-produce.

Magic will be involved in the show. Speaking to Deadline, producer Harrison said: “Whoever the magic person is, and we don’t know who it is yet, they’ll be heavily involved because it’s very important, obviously, if you’re doing a show called The Illusionist, that there be good illusions.”

Lloyd Webber has said that the musical could premiere on Broadway or in the West End, but would prefer for it to be the latter.

The musical will be partly based on the 2006 film of the same name, which is set in Vienna in 1900 and follows a disruptive magician.

This news follows the recent announcement that Lloyd Webber's musical Evita will return next year in a production also directed by Lloyd.

Check back for information on The Illusionist on LondonTheatre.co.uk

Photo credit: Andrew Lloyd Webber